Posts Tagged ‘urban ninja squadron’

intersections – Dufferin & Queen

Posted: May 11, 2026 in construction, graffiti and street art, history, intersections, old buildings, transportation
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

 

a woman stands under an umbrella on a rainy morning as she waits for a green light at Dufferin and Queen

The intersection of Dufferin and Queen Street West is dominated by the CN railway & GO transit tracks.  Large underpasses to the north and to the east define the character of the streets here.

Google map of Dufferin and Queen West area

Between 1881 and 1891, the population of Toronto more than doubled, from 86,415 in 1881 to over 181,125 ten years later (numbers are from census data).  As the city expanded, infrastructure struggled to keep up as it usually does.  It was decided that Queen Street needed an underpass instead of a level crossing.  In 1896 the first bridge was built.  At this time, Dufferin street ended at Queen to make room for the tracks.   Dufferin was now divided into a north and south section.

below: This is a 1898 photo from the City of Toronto archives  showing the new railway bridges over Queen Street West.  The view is westward. Dufferin is difficult to see in this image but it ends under the railway bridge that is farthest away.   Parkdale train station would have been just outside the picture on the left side.  It was closed by 1970.

black and white photograph, 1898, from city of toronto archives of queen and dufferin intersection

below: Still on Queen Street and still looking west but from farther back from the railway bridge which is now in the distance.  The big square-ish building on the right is a Veterinary Surgeon’s office.  The ad on the side of the building is for ‘The Sun’ where you could find the highest grade of bicycles, manufactured by G. T. Pendrith. The photo was taken in November 1896.

black and white photo from late 1890s, Queen street looking west towards railway tracks and Dufferin Street

source: There are many places to find this photo on the internet. This copy came from Wikimedia Commons.

below: Looking east along Queen from Noble Street, past Dufferin to the railway tracks, 1954. The Gladstone Hotel in the distance.  There is a Shell gas station on the southwest corner, and although it’s difficult to see, a policeman is standing in the intersection directing traffic.

black and white photo from Toronto Public library digital archives

source: Toronto Public Library digital archives.  Photographer – James V. Salmon

 

below: Southwest corner today …. that Shell station is long gone. A newer condo development fills that corner (built since 2010).

man crossing Dufferin st at Queen, looking west

person in red rain coat crossing queen street west at dufferin, painted sidewalk box in abstract design in the foreground, railway underpass with traffic in the background

below: The stone wall along the east side of Dufferin looks very similar to that of 1954.  The buses have been modernized though – we now have new shiny red hybrids.

newer lectric hybrid TTC bus northbound on Dufferin at Queen

The “Dufferin Jog” was fixed in 2010 when another railway bridge was built.

below: Looking north up Dufferin during the construction of the bridge, 2010.  This is another image from the City of Toronto archives.

construction of the bridge for CN rail and GO transit, to eliminate the dufferin jog, 2010, from city of toronto archives

source: Fonds 601, Series 2860, File 4, Item 1 (City of Toronto archives)

below: North on Dufferin today (not exactly the same view as above).  Bus lanes, or rather transit priority lanes, have recently been painted red.  The red brick building on the east side of Dufferin still remains.

looking north on dufferin from the railway bridge at Queen Street west

below: There are changes coming to the northwest corner of the intersection.  This photo was taken from the corner of Noble and Queen and is generally north looking.

northwest corner of Queen & Dufferin, photo taken from corner of Noble and Queen and looking northeast, vacant lot, buildings have been demolished

below: Hoardings on the north side of Queen

hoardings beside sidewalk on northwest part of queen and dufferin

below: The view behind the hoardings

vacant lot, behind hoardings, buildings already demolished

To the west of the tracks is the Parkdale neighbourhood with its colours and idiosyncrasies.

queen stret west looking west from dufferin, rainy gray morning, with traffic and a TTC streetcar

pale blue door with windows that have been covered with a floral pattern, green door frame, large store windows have been covered in blue

Rustic Cosmos Cafe sign with cow in a teacup. cow is wearing a black top hat and high heel shoes

Alexander felafel on the corner of Queen and Gwynne

side entrances to a building, two doors with 4 mailboxes between them. one of the doors is covered with stickers

billboard on side of old brick building, with text that says made you look. it's an advertisement for a store of that name

large street art mural on Queen west on side of building that is sound studio above and market below

The Milky Way runs parallel to Queen on the south side.  There has been lots of street here and I have blogged about it before, 5 times before as it turns out.  The first time was back on 2015 (Walking the Milky Way) and the most recent was in 2023 (Aging on the Milky Way)

where Milky Way meets Gwynne Ave., old houses on Gwynne

mural in Milky Way, grey tones, women's face, eyes closed

part of a mural in Milky Way, triangle shape with two eyes and words be aware!

graffiti sticker on a pole, a raccoon in a field of pumpkins

photo of a man's face, wearing sunglasses, pasteup graffiti on a pole

below: On the north side of the railway tracks, there is a pedestrian crossing and bike path.  There is also a quiet corner with a couple of benches.  The rest of the images in this post were taken on that pedestrian crossing.

beside the railway tracks, two benches

below: The Turd Reich – a wonderful series of paste-ups of our “favourite” men in uniform.   Donald Trump, Elon Musk, British MP Nigel Farage, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu,  JD Vance, and Vladimir Putin have been dressed up as World War II Nazi soldiers.  This collection first appeared in London, England about a year ago. They are they creation of Grow Up Art.

paper paste up graffiti on a glass wall beside railway tracks

below: A hole in the fence, with a well worn and muddy path!

a hole in the fence beside train tracks

fence, pedestrian crossing for bridge, with lots of graffiti on it,

below: Thing 1 and Thing 2, right out of the Cat in the Hat.

three paste up graffiti pieces on a concrete support to a pole. One is T bonez and trp 613 sailor dude dressed as thing 1 and thing 2 from Dr Suess Cat in the hat. second paste up is pink donut with a heart shaped hole and last is a white rabbit face

below: A little red X marks the spot

graffiti on wall, you are here, good bye 2025

below: We are all connected

paint on a glass wall, including words we are all connected

below: Every man needs a muse.  Who is your Venus?

graffiti with words Venus, every man needs a muse

little red graffiti face on white paint

graffiti stickers on city of toronto bike parking rings, pink iced donuts, visual noise,

graffiti stickers

graffiti stickers

yellow t bonez, visual noise, urban jinja,

graffiti stickers

graffiti stickers and slaps on a pole, by sentient cookie and geekypet,

below:  “Always remember you’re Heart & Soul, you are Loved 4 ever.  Trust me.”

love your 4 ever graffiti on red paint

Graffiti by: Catchoo, D7606, Feellings Boi, Geekypet, Sentient Cookie, Sketchrat,  TRP613, Urban Ninja Squadron, Visual Noise, Vivvy, Zonr (and others)

walking through railway underpass, beside woman waiting at a TTC bus stop

Queen West-ish

Posted: June 3, 2025 in alleys, construction, graffiti and street art, public art
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

a yellow lovebot sculpture, with a red heart, on the counter at Nadege bakery

A Lovebot!  What a great way to start a day.  These two “live” at Nadege Bakery on Queen West.  The one on the left looks a little like mint ice cream with chocolate chips!  Or else the poor guy has some wickedly strange skin condition.

below: Washing the window makes for more reflections!

man washing inside of window, reflections of other people, cars, and buildings in the same window

below: The Ordinary

two signs above two adjacent stores, one on left says the ordinary, the one on the right says type.

below: And the not so ordinary

a little painting of a black bird with a long neck pecking at someone's brown hair, small painting mounted on a wood utility pole along with traffic signs, no parking

This is a “walk with friends” post.  Last Wednesday I walked with the Wednesday Walking Gang, most of whom I have known and walked with for years. Our “route” took us around the neighbourhoods to the west and south of Trinity Bellwoods Park.  We walked on streets such as Walnut, Stafford, and Shaw.

 

a woman walks down an alley towards a car parked by a garage

We saw houses, lots of houses…   some new…..

new three storey house on Stanley Terrace which is narrow street with park on the other side of the street

new addition to a house, with black cladding, older part of house is red brick

…  some old …

row houses, brick painted white house on left, then a blue house, and then brown, with a lot of green plants in the front yard.

green house with elaborately decorated front porch

…. and many in a row

a row of houses on Shaw street, mansour roofs, two storey,

… and even one with a pirate flag

front porch of a house, with a pirate flag on display

below: It’s great walking in May when spring gardens are in full bloom.   There were lots of front yards with interesting plants to look at.

an open picket gate by a front yard full of spring greenery as well as a tree with red leaves

below: Purple irises

purple irises in bloom in the front yard of a house

below: White clematis flowers

white clematis flowers growing against a grey wall

green shrub growing in front of a shiny surface wall with black paint graffiti that looks like a face

among many green plants and leaves, a small white statue of an old man, standing with two smaller people, one under each arm.

below: Geraniums in the window.

a brick house with lots of windows, pots of red geraniums are in the window

below: There’s something in the window – and it doesn’t look like flowers!

a cut out of a male body builder in just his skimpy underwear, flexing his muscles in an athletic pose,
hanging on the outside of a building in a lane, a painting of a dog, along with a Christmas wreath

below: Ready for summer?

backyard, semi divided house, patio table and chairs in the backyard along with a grey umbrella that is folded up

backyard space of a three storey brick building, with exterior metal balconies and access stair cases,

 

worker in yellow vest and hard hat controlling traffic on Shaw street because part of road is closed, rowhouses behind,

below: Utility pole replacement in progress – wow!  are those poles tall!

large flatbed truck carrying new utility poles parked on shaw street, workmen

construction workers standing around outside, by a sign on its side that says come in, we're open

orange do not enter sign on yellow metal fence in front of a red container

below: Three hoppers (funnels?), remnants of an industrial past.

three large metal hoppers, funnel shaped, at the top at roofline of brick building, old, once an industrial use

looking in through open door of mechanic's garage, swivel chair, shelves of tools

below: Queen Street, looking east from Shaw.

people waiting to cross intersection, queen at shaw, looking east on queen, TTC streetcar coming westbound stores, and other people, truck stopped at the red light, painted side of building on northeast corner

below:  Queen West at Walnut Ave where 7-Eleven gas is on the southeast corner (and gas is 135.9/litre).  St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church is the large red brick building on the north side of Queen West.

7 Eleven gas station on the southeast corner of Queen Street West and Walnut Ave., with St. Nicholas Ukrainian RC Church across the street

below: The north end of Toronto’s Stanley Park (not quite as big as the one in Vancouver!)

a woman with two dogs on leashes, walking across a park

There were two billboards, back to back, near King and Strachan that were part of the CONTACT Photography Festival.  They both had large images from Alanna Field’s “Unveiling” series.

spadina auto service, mechanic, building, with large billboard above with image by Alanna Fields, art, for contact photo festival

image of young black men, by alanna fields, on a billboard

construction site, with billboard above, billboard has image of black man with red background

There were other portraits seen along the way….

below: An orange painting on a white garage door, by doktor karayom.  Here little people seem to be emerging from this poor person’s head.  A little foot in one ear and an exploring hand reaching into the other.  Two cheeky little faces too.  I can’t imagine that that would be comfortable!

orange paint on white garage door, a large face with other smaller heads coming out of it, doktor karayom, in an alley

below: A bit more realistic, but still with a touch of macabre – young person with four hazel eyes painted by Alex Garant.

portrait of a young boy street art mural on the side of a house, boy has four eyes, one set right above the other, also two mouths

below: Normal eyes, blue eyes, on this woman with the long brown hair. Painted by Spud1

street art mural on a garage door in an alley, a portrait of a woman with long brown hair and blue eyes, by spud1

street art mural on a garage in an alley, a portrait of a woman with long brown hair blowing a dandelion, seeds into air, by spud 1

below: There was also the face of a queen, a portrait of Queen Victoria, in a Queen West (no, not Queen Wet!) mural near Trinity Bellwoods Park by Electric Coffin and Denial (aka Daniel Bombardier).

Queen West mural featuring portrait of a queen wearing a crown

below: Four goofy faces in all the wrong colours – great whimsical silliness

urban art painting ona garage door, 4 silly goofy faces in bright wrong colours, green faces, red eyes, or big yellow eyes,

below: There are no human faces here in this Birdo (aka Jerry Rugg) mural but there is an alligator (crocodile?) with red eyes and big teeth as well as a shark lurking at the bottom.

mural by Birdo, aka Jerry Rugg, on a two storey black building, a crocdile or alligator head, and a shark along with the geometric shapes that mark his work

below: Owl in the night sky, a painting by Christina Mazzulla

street art mural of an owl, white face, orange features

below: For many years there has been a white albino squirrel that lives in or near Trinity Bellwoods park.  Here, Ted Hamer has painted it on a Bell box by the sidewalk on Shaw.

painting by Ted Hamer, of the white albino squirrel that is seen at Trinity Bellwoods park, on a metal bell box on the sidewalk

 

below: Swan

mural of a white swan on pink background by the entrance to a store on Ossington

below: A large snake is coiled up and squeezed into the confines of the fence.

street art painting of a snake with its tongue out, on a fence, with houses and backyards behind

below: Rowell Soller’s work covers the front of this garage.

front of garage in alley covered by street art painting in red, yellow and blacks, by Rowell Soller,

below: Curves by Flips

street art painting by Flips, pink and white swirls and curls, with 5 orange plastic bollards in front of it

below: One could argue that this is actually a bench.

an old dark green wood bench with graffiti on it that says this is a sign. it also has the number 3333 painted on it.

below: Urban Ninja Squadron gets together with Cosmo and away they fly!

sticker graffiti on green metal box, visual noise and urban ninja squadron collaboration with cosmo. t bonez is helping to fly a flying saucer

below: A warning sign – this area is remotely monitored…

a city of toronto street sign for Ossington Ave., by a traffic light also a poster with a picture of Jesus that says warning this area is remotely monitored.

below: Do you have any photos sitting around the house just taking up space?

4 small photos tacked onto a wood utility pole with purple push pins

on a red and white, my name is sticker.. a black drawing of a face with Z shape eyes and triangle nose, lots of teeth in mouth, two ears,

below: Can you see the donuts?

large graffiti slap on cement utility pole, in pink, blue and purple

side of a Canada Post mailbox covered with graffiti stickers as well as small ads

three small graffiti stickers on the side of black mailbox

blue baseball hat in the window of a store, embroidered with the words good vibes only

Thanks everyone!

a group of people walking down an alley with garages on both sides, and taller buildings at the end

children walking past a group of photographers and giving them strange look

 

back to Ossington

Posted: May 8, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
5

Ossington Avenue is an interesting street to walk with it’s numerous stores, restaurants and coffee shops.  But there is another fascinating world hiding behind the main street in the numerous lanes and alleys in the area.  A few weeks ago I presented some images from these alleys (Behind Ossington, 15 April),  but I barely scratched the surface of what is there.

on Ossington Ave., older buildings that are now stores. one is painted olive green, another is white, and third is red brick. at the end, is a building with large yellow and blue vertical stripes, a bench is on the sidewalk

For this blog post, I have assembled more of the photographs that I have taken around Ossington since January of this year.  It gets a bit long because I decided not to chop it into smaller pieces, so grab a seat and let’s get started!

a bench beside a green wall in a snow covered parking lot, door beside bench has love U! written on it

below: A whimsical Uber5000 painting on a garage door.

uber 5000 mural, green biplane with 3 yellow birdies, including one standing on a bomb. dog standing on one of the airplane wings

below: Hearts on fire, burning love, and the fireman that is trying to extinguish the flames – in a mural created by D. Terra Stencils.

stencil,ural by D. Terra stencils, a crouching fireman holds a hose and shoots water upward towards a big red heart

below: One of the cutest raccoons that I have ever seen, also painted by D.Terra Stencils.

mural by D. Terra stencils, of a young raccoon, green leafy background

below: Some more cute raccoons of a different sort go camping in a mural by Emily May Rose

Emily May Rose raccoons go camping, with a grey and orange trailer, a yellow umbrella, and a folding chair too

two grey Emily May Rose raccoons play in a pile of dirt, while drinking canned drinks

below: … and some more raccoons!

Emily May Rose raccoons in a painting on a fence in an alley

below: …. and even more!

in an allley, wall and door, raccoons by Emily May Rose and text graffiti too
toronto alley near ossington with street art on fences and garages

below: Smaller black stencil graffiti on a white garage door – an iconic image of Marilyn Monroe as well as a Kung fu Panda.  The other woman gets a splash of bright red.

black stencil graffiti on a white garage door, portrait of Marilyn Monroe, and kung fu panda image, as well as another woman's head and face

below: A trumpet player and a gun fight.

black stencil graffiti on a white garage door, a man playing a trumpet, also two men in a gun fight with one standing over the other who is lying on the ground.

below: Bikes on the stairs with a colourful bird keeping a watchful eye.

in an alley, exterior stairs to a small balcony, bike parked on stairs, mural of a bird painted on wall beside the stairs

below: A tribute mural celebrating Canadian Black designers.

mural in an ossington alley, black background, text that says Designers of Canada, with three portraits, on the lower level of a three storey red brick building

below: An old square brick building, garages and fences with graffiti, old trees, and a row of houses at the end of the lane – this captures the look of a typical Toronto lane.

looking down an alley, garages with graffiti on the right, fence on the left, at the end, a semi divided house that is different on either side, also at end of alley, on right, a larger red brick building (old)

below: Home patio, outdoor living urban style.

exterior of building, concrete block painted a dark yellow,, white door, and black window, with 2 small chairs and a table, and a stool, immediately outside the building

below: “Stop and enjoy”.  I like how the poster below the stop sign says “mediocrity” which makes the overall message, “Stop and enjoy mediocrity”.  A bit snarky.

stop sign on a pole in an alley, beside a garage door with street art on it. text graffiti on the stop sign so that it says stop and enjoy

in a laneway with street art murals on all the garage doors

part of a larger mural, a face in the sun, eyes closed, some vines are growing over the face

older drawing on garage, man's face, coconut tree with palm leaves,

below: The tail end of a fishy mural.

a small alley near Ossington, cars parked in alley, one side has building with mural on it, the other is a house with grey siding cladding

below: This aquatic themed mural dates from 2016 when a group of artists painted many murals in the area, all with the Great Lakes as their theme. They were part of Pangeaseed Foundation’s Seawalls for Oceans project. Some artworks have survived better than others. Love letters in paint is a post from 2016 that show most of them in their original form.

fish mural by shalak attack

below: The Swiss army knife was also a Pangeaseed mural

street art mural with a big red swiss army knife in the center

below: Where possible, Jimmy’s Coffee shops have exterior walls painted with images of famous Jimmys including the one on Ossington. Jimmy Carter, James Dean, the guitar of Jimmy Hendrix and two muppets representing Jim Henson Gonzo and Elmo

images of famous Jimmys on the side of Jimmys coffee shop on Ossington, Jimmy Carter, James Dean, the guitar of Jimmy Hendrix and two muppets representing Jim Henson gonzo and elmo

black and white image of Jimmy Hendrix singing and playing guitar, pink background, mural

below: A Jimmy of a different kind, a fantastic cacaphony of colours and shapes in a mural by Jimmy Chiale

mural of abstract shapes and colours by j. chiale

below: Close up of part of a mural, a young man wearing a black mask over his eyes.

close up of a street art painting, a young man in a black mask over his eyes

photo taken in a snowy parking lot, of the backs of some houses, fences, backyards,

below: Rowell Soller

rowell soller mural on a garage door

below: Two paintings on two different garages that look like they were done by the same artist.  The signature appears to be Soul R. and the top painting is from 2017.

mural of a turtle swimming in the water, in light shades of brown, blue garage

mural of a turtle swimming in the water, in a wall in an alley, with a pile of empty boxes and containers on the ground in front of it

below: 2022 Christina Mazzulla, for the Golden Turtle Restaurant.

mural, pink flowers, a fish, and a sea turtle

on the side wall of a house in an alley, mural, pink flowers, a fish, and a sea turtle

below: “You are stroger than you think”

a house being renovated, plywood over downstairs window with graffiti on it

below: Nick Sweetman has used shades of blue and purple to create this wonderful northern scene with a bear and moose combo.

a large bear and a moose, in a mural on a garage door in an alley, painted by bruno smoky or shalak attack

below: Totally blue.   The other colours have faded?  Or were never there in the first place?

gate in alley, double wide, at the end of a driveway, all in blue

below: More garage doors painted by D.Terra Stencils

alley near Ossington with lots of garage doors covered with murals, street art, urban art

below: On a bright yellow background, an image of Jean Michel Basquiat, one of the original creators present-day street art.

garage door painted yellow, then a portrait of Jean Michel Basquiat often considered the founder of street art

below: .. and beside Basquiat, a levitating woman

mural on an alley garage door by D.TErra stencils, a levitating woman, lying on her back up in the air, long hair hanging down.

below: Written in Portuguese is “Nem às paredes confesso” which translates to “I don’t even confess to the walls”.

mural on red background, musicians, one singer and one instrument player

below: Portuguese words, and nearby a Portuguese flag

street art painting of the Portuguese (Portugal) flag

mural, portrait of a man on a purple background

below: Boxers – Muhammad Ali and an opponent

boxing mural

below: The last D. Terra Stencils is this rendition of Ren and Stimpy

ren and stimpy from Nickelodeon TV in the 1990s, in a mural

trimming trees in an alley, man in lift above the lane, truck, some garages with graffiti and street art

little bits of metal on a wood utility pole

exterior door in an alley, covered with street art

part of a larger painting, a small character peaks its head out from the middle of a puffy orange letter O

below: The next four images are of the same mural in a snowy laneway parking lot…  starting with DAM DOG ketchup bottle

parking lot, in winter, box with street art on it beside a wall with more painting

parrt of a mural, smiling skull with a chain through one eye socket, and slightly yellow bottom teeth,

below: Parking for Animals

from a larger mural, young man in multi colour sunglasses, with a can of spray paint in his hand

close up of part of a mural, finger on the top of a spray paint can

below: These little ceramic animals have been walking in this alley for at least ten years.

little flat ceramic animal shapes, a turtle a small dinosaur, glued to a wall in an alley, beige with green and pink dots,

below: T-bonez stands alone, maybe waiting for the light to turn green?

t bonex sticker on a yellow box (for crossing signal). urban ninja squadron, visual noise,

T bonez sticker from visual noise and urban ninja squadron

close up of an old turquoise section of street art on wood fence, with red spray paint circle and double cross

on a wall painted very deep but bright red, outside in an alley, torn bits of paper remain where posters have been partially torn off

box on a wall, covered with stickers that are mostly in black and white, with red spray paint tag on top of it all.

below: And what’s this? Even more raccoons?! Toronto’s “beloved” trash pandas are everywhere!

raccoons in an alley mural, one sitting on a trash can, drinking, raccoons are trash pandas

part of a mural, painted by Emily May Rose, of a greenish grey raccoon, or trash panda, sitting of the top of a metal garbage can, holding a bottle with an XXX label.

between West Lodge and Lansdowne

Posted: April 12, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art, locations
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

Running west off of West Lodge Ave., there is an alley behind Queen Street West on the north side.  The upper part of this long, low building was painted blue a number of years ago.  Since then it has been tagged and used as a place to put graffiti.

alley, long low building on right hand side, painted blue, with windows,

below: T-bonez from Urban Ninja Squadron practises yoga positions.

below: A bright red door that has unfortunately been scrawled on.  Beside it is a black figure that seems to be diving backwards while holding a bunch of colourful balloons.

below: Once it was a pink cat with green whiskers

below: Holding tight to that red rose.

stencil on a wall in an alley, a fist holding a red rose

Continuing west towards Lansdowne ….

below: Faces in the alley, with a bit too much gold

below: Chubby cheeks and big fat lips…. and how many eyes?

below: Faces, many faces with their eyes closed and their hair swirling around.  Mural painted by Carol Ann Apilado

below: “Tell me its all going to be okay?  Not sure if I can do that buddy…..

graffiti on a black garage, white drawing of a person with fingers in peace sign, with text Tell me it's all going to be okay?

below: Patterns and shapes on fence, by Hello Kirsten

murals on a fence in an alley including one by hello kirsten, design patterns, also a woman in purple,

murals in an alley, a garage painted all orange, paintings on fence, face and cacti painted in side a car port under an apartment

motorcycle parked in front of blue fence, beside a garage in a lane, near Queen Street West and Lansdowne

mini cooper car parked in an alley beside a garage with street art and graffiti on it

green spray paint and black drippy paint graffiti on red brick wall

alley views

below: Enough!  Although once upon a time it said more than that…..

close up of painting on a wood fence, abstract shapes and colours, with texture

This post also appears on my street art blog, Eyes on the Streets.

First 2025 visit to Graffiti Alley

Posted: January 23, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art, locations
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
3

My previous post, “skateboard portraits” was from a walk down Graffiti Alley the other day.   This post contains more photos that I took that snowy afternoon… so, let’s take a look!

below: Uber 5000’s yellow bird is still walking his dog and singing a song on this side of this red brick building.  It’s at least 10 years old?  The black and grey portrait on the right is much newer.

Graffiti Alley street art paintings, many, including uber 5000 walking dog and singing,

below: Profile portrait by TheHalfDecent

Graffiti Alley street art painting, profile portrait of woman in black and purple, car parked in front of it

below: “Let them drink beer”, a stencil from D. Terra

below:  A 33wallflower33 pasteup in the foreground, with a corner of one of Nick Sweetman’s bird murals in the background.

pasteup by 33wallflower33, a black and white vintage photo of a woman, cut to oval shape, on a red surface. graffiti alley, a mural by nick sweetman is in the background, a blue bird in flight

below: A collaboration between Nick Sweetman and Shanehuss produced this drippy, melting jaw portrait.

street art mural, calligraphy in grey tones is the background, man's portrait with red skin, purple hat, metal frame glasses, the bottom part of the face is either washing away or melting.

below: The top portion of ” RIP King Reign & Son of Soul” remains.  This tribute mural was painted by Elicser Elliott and Omen514.  I am not sure who is responsible for the newer painting on the bottom, the one in yellows and blues.  That’s probably a ‘signature’ in the bottom left but I don’t recognize it.

Graffiti Alley street art painting, 2 men wearing caps, King Reign and Son of Soul tribute mural, also a uber5000 little yellow bird with a tea cup in his hand

part of King Reign and Son of Soul tribute mural by Elicser Elliott and Omen 514, with newer abstract mural covering the bottom part

below: Graffiti Alley in the snow.

graffiti alley in the snow

below: Sun of Aquarius (aka Andre Mandela Lopez) painted this naked figure with brown wings and bird mask

in an alley, exterior stairs to upper level balcony in alcove with two sides painted with murals, including one by sun of aquarius

below: A pole covered with knit squares while T-bonez is shushing you.

Graffiti Alley street art painting, on wall, pole in front of wall that is covered with knit squares, also a pasteup of urban ninja squadron, t bonez

below: A pointy nosed, long snouted dog by Mr. Myl, aka Luis Casas, who was originally from Havana Cuba.

mr myl street art painting in graffiti alley, on bright pink background, an orange and yellow dog with log snout and orange teeth, small ears, sitting position

below: Another Mr. Myl dog, this one with its blue eyes popping out.   I don’t think that it’s because of the woman next to him.  “Para mi Tita” is Spanish for “For my aunt”.

mr myl street art painting in graffiti alley, on bright pink background, an orange and yellow dog with log snout and orange teeth, small ears, sitting position, beside a portrait of a woman holding a large calla lily, with text

below: Blue haired woman by April Showers

below: And another blue haired woman…..

below: … and a third.  I think that I see a trend.  Methinks April Showers likes blue hair.

grey car parked in parking lot at end of alley, murals painted on the walls, stickers cover the signs

below: An anti-camera, anti-photographer image, “Gimmy a break, clik, clik, clik” featuring uber 5000’s yellow bird and blue cat, with the Pink Panther is a supporting role.   Love the red specs!

street art on a wall by stairs, pink panther, uber 5000 yellow bird, tags, also uber 5000 complaints about photographers

below:  Poser bunny in red

street art, red poser bunny

below: He (she?) seems puzzled by the snow?!

a young person with short dark hair, and a yellow t shirt, mural in graffiti alley

below: Is it a man or is it a chicken?  A red headed cigarette smoking, spray painting character by Tuffytats

street art painting by tuffytats

below: This one looks more like a chicken should look, so fowl.

below: An environmental message – “Got mercury?” from a non-profit group trying to raise awareness of the impact of mercury poisoning on indigenous communities.

graffiti on a wall, yellow bird from uber5000, red and turquoise character with devil horns and furry hair

graffiti alley in the winter, snowing, some snow on the ground

below: Good Luck!

street art painting, green background, a red apple sitting on 2 books, an arrow runs through the apple

graffiti alley mural, guitar player, red guitar, also an elicser elliott piece of a person wearing a rabbit hat

below: Another 33wallflower33 vintage woman.

graffiti on a wall including woman in bikini by 33 wallflower 33.

below: Chubby purple cheeks gives a thumbs up

street art painting of a large purple monster face

below: Still reaching out and trying to touch someone…..

old telephone booth in graffiti alley

street art mural, asian woman with purple hair tied up on top of her head with glowing lantern

graffiti on a wall including a red heart with J + J written in the middle

graffiti alley – spring 2024

Posted: March 15, 2024 in graffiti and street art
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

As you might know, every once in a while I walk down Graffiti Alley to see if there is anything new that might be of interest.  This blog post is a result of last week’s walk….

below: Orange hair with attitude – “You don’t look smart because you have a beard!” by NYC based City Kitty. In the upper right corner all the way from the UK, a D7606 old style telephone featuring David Bowie… call a friend.

graffiti on a wall, pasteup of man with three eyes and a lot of orange hair and facial hair. Also a paste up by D76060 of a blue old fashioned rotary phone with an image of musician David Bowie in the center.

below: Havana to Toronto and of course, 2 + 2 always = 5.

two images side by side on a wall in graffiti alley

below: A diverse group of faces

below: Many more faces but mostly a frowny face man.  Every time I look at this picture I think of Poilievre but that opinion might get me into trouble!

stickers, graffiti, on a pole, a painting of a scowling frowning man on the wall beside the pole

below: Purple with green wings and a golden halo – horus and tuffytats (aka Trevor Goodwin) be dreaming again?

tuffytats painting on a wall in graffiti alley, female figure in purple with wings and a halo

below: “Tell them louder”

below: Yarn squares crocheted and attached to a pole with Urban Ninja Squadron’s T-bonez looking on.

yarn squares, knit and or crocheted, and attached to a utility pole in alley, a large urban ninja squadron paste up is beside it

below: No Dumping stickers

black and yellow city street sign saying no dumping,with many graffiti stickers on it

below: Playing on his knees.  That’s quite the instrument.  Cuba on his shoulder.

below: And a similar man with curly hair and beard, but this time in pink.

pink portrait of a man with curly hair, curly beard, and a mustache, his eyes are closed

below: A blue legless and armless robot along with a conehead type creature with a big mouth, both at 733.

below: FPmonkey – a young woman with long purple hair tied up with green flowers.   A single red tear drop on her cheek.

below: Uber5000’s marine life is still a colourful fixture in the alley.

below: Nearby, his Toronto/Canada themed mural has not lasted as well.  A couple of yellow birdies are still visible.

defaced uber5000 mural, with tags and graffiti over it, some yellow birdies still visible

below: Spiderman and the Spiderverse – some of the mural remains untouched but much of it has been tagged over

part of a mural about spiderman and the spiderverse but some of it has been tagged over

below: En masse has a number of pieces in the area including three metal boxes on the sidewalk – this is part of one of those boxes.  Almost all of their work is in black and white.

part of a black and white desiden by en masse on a metal box on the sidewalk

below: The tears of a clown when there’s no one around….

part of a mural, a clown with large white collar, white hat with red hearts on it, and a lot of white face make up is crying big tears, flower in his hat, big red mouth,

below: She’s green.

below: Tiny finds on a blue wall.  Princess Lays Chicken (Princess Laya Chicken?)

below: remnants of Black Lives Matter, and a new purple flower on the door.

below: A scrawny cat scribbled on yellow paint.  In case it is difficult to see, the sticker (or paste up) on the pole is an old television set with text near the bottom that says, “HAHA”.  Interpret it as you wish (as usual).

below: Rubbish in the lane (maybe just a spring clean up needed? … not that the alley is usually clean LOL)

 

Kensington graffiti – January 2024 edition

Posted: January 16, 2024 in graffiti and street art
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

Yes, another Kensington post … to make it three in a row.

below:  A group with all eyes on their phones and perhaps all connected to the cloud.  But it’s a dark angry cloud, even a nuclear mushroom cloud, but nobody notices.

small paper graffiti stencil of a group of people in 3d glasses, all looking at their phones

below: On a Kensington pole, Visual Noise, Urban Ninja Squadron‘s T-bonez dressed as the farmer’s wife standing beside a very sturdy looking Sailor Dude Farmer from Ty Pro. A luchadore from Bruho waits below, ready for a fight….  “Bruho raced to fight the fascists.”

stickers on a pole in kensington

below: T bonez, this time with Bruho in a psychadelic pink and purple haze on a mushroom.

urban ninja squadron t bonez coloured picture, with a little catchoo

below: Catchoo’s little blue disc says save me but perhaps that’s what Tweety Bird should be saying – does he realize that the tiger is right behind him?! That’s no ordinary puddy cat! Paste-up by tweet_streetart (aka Tweet).

square catchoo face in pale blue and white on a pole with another slap of a tiger chasing tweety bird

below: Running ninjas , The Chosen Few

urban ninja squadron visual noise sticker, running while holding hands with bird

below: … and then he takes to the air.

t bonez graffiti slap, holding onto red helicopter whirlie blades

below: Another 33wallflower33 piece this time it involves kids and a horse.  I don’t want to know what the worm is up to or what might be going through it’s head (assuming worms have brains?).

33 wallflower 33 paste up of two kids on horse back, along with a catchoo worm sticker with its tongue stuck out

below: This threesome has seen better days.  On the left, in the original the woman is serving up Doug Ford’s head in a frying pan (33wallflower33).

33wallflower 33 black and white paste up besie a catchoo worm sticker along with a tweety street art cat holding a teddy bear

below:  There’s that worm again!  T-Bonez is now standing beside a cute koala and the woman in the 33wallflower33 piece is stripping down to her panties.  No frying pans or horses here!

graffiti on a pole along with street signs

below: “Death is just the beginning” Don’t you wonder what it’s the beginning of?

two text graffitis, small, on wall, one is written on brown tile and says death is only the beginning and the other is a white sticker written in blue

below: Sentient cookie (aka Cecil Tian) man with heavily tattooed arm, smoking…  with the poor fellow below crying his eyes out, almost literally.

below: Rubber Ducky

sticker, little yellow rubber ducky

below: There is another Sentient Cookie sticker at the top.  The red in the middle is the creation of Fernando Chamarelli

below: Markus

below: Stay hydrated!

sticker, black and white, man is drinking from an oil or gas container

below: Golden crown on blue painted metal, Rocky Zenyk.

metal, crown, on utility pole

below:  Hands holding a solid structure, home, from which nature, flowers and leaves, flourish.

engraved and coloured brass rectangle street art, beside part of a black and white mural

below: Grey metal this time, and words say” Forsan Miseros” across the top, above what appears to be a man praying.  He is surrounded by flames, beseeching the gods.  The full text is “Forsan miseros meliora sequetur” and it is Latin; the internet translates it as “For those in misery, perhaps better things will follow”.  Latin scholars may disagree.

below: completely covered

back of a traffic sign on dundas, completely covered with stickers

below: Little green paint roller army man running into battle, somewhere on the streets.  More political is the “Free Palestine” sticker above it (from them from whom?).

three stickers on a pole, a green army man with a paint roller in his hand, a free palestine sticker, and another

below: Hello my new friend

written on red on top of a black and white graffiti painting, the words, hello my new friend

Previous two Kensington street art posts:
1. blues, and more in a Kensington lane
2. Is everyone nice?

 

Silhouettes on the door

Posted: October 9, 2023 in construction, graffiti and street art, locations, transportation
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
3

I heard about these silhouettes that have painted on the plywood used to board up the doors and windows of five empty houses so I went to see them for myself.  They are on Raglan Road which is close to St. Clair and Bathurst.

black silhouettes of people painted on plywood used to board up doors and windows of empty houses waiting to be demolished

black silhouettes of people painted on plywood used to board up doors and windows of two empty houses waiting to be demolished

black silhouettes of people painted on plywood used to board up doors and windows of empty houses waiting to be demolished, older woman

“Took a walk and passed your house late last night
All the shades were pulled and drawn way down tight
From within, the dim light cast two silhouettes on the shade
Oh, what a lovely couple they made”

two black silhouettes painted on plywood covering a window, parent holding up young child in air above head

row of houses boarded up and empty

I am not sure how long these houses have been empty but there is graffiti in the back too.

graffiti across the back of two empty houses

As I was in the neighbourhood, what else is there to see here?  Anything new? Back in 2015 I posted a few pictures from the St. Clair and Vaughan Road area (see Intersections).  This time I stayed within the northwest quadrant of that intersection.   Like most places, somethings have changed while other things remain the same.

Back to early October 2023 …  many other houses were empty and boarded up

behind metal construction fence, an empty house that has been boarded up

yellow fire hydrant in front of hoardings around old houses waiting to be demolished. The hoardings hava painting of a young man, a red poppy and a large orange flower

… and many other houses have already been demolished.

man walking past construction site with tall condo tower as well as single family houses in the background

vacant lot with houses and highrises bhind

red and blue barrels in a vacant lot in front of other buildings

In the above picture you can see that this area has some older smaller apartment buildings.  Raglan Road runs parallel to Vaughan Road, home to many mid-sized older buildings.

front entrance of an older brick apartment building

three storey brick apartment building on Vaughan Road

three storey brick apartment building on Vaughan Road

cement truck delivering cement to a work site beside an older brick apartment building

below: Linked buildings

elevated corridors, open to outside, linking buildings

Once it was the Happy Family Restaurant.  Now someone (a happy family?) lives there.

squarish building, two storey, lower level once a store, now a residence, two entrance doors, old yellow sign

…. other businesses are boarded up.  This was the Dutch Dreams Ice Cream shop before they moved farther south on Vaughan Road.  While it sits empty it is a space for graffti.  Dutch Dreams had moved out before December 2015.

old black Mercedes car parked beside a boarded up red brick building

below: Just wait – Not sure what we’re waiting for but I see an alpha and an omega on a death moth?

paper graffiti with words just wait, black and white drawing of a dragonfly, on red brick

below: Peeling and faded.  Sailor dude and some colourful designs.

peeling and faded paper graffiti

below: Elaborate probably female form with gown and hat beside a not so elaborate wine bottle.  The label on the bottle says Lutte Libre Bruht.

black stencil graffiti on plywood

below: They’ve been here a while – Urban Ninja Squadron’s T-Bonez in various poses including dressed as Robin, the Boy Wonder.

peeling pasteup graffiti on plywood

below: Give Love and be a Hero

paper pasteup printed in red, on plywood board covering window

In the summer of 2020 there was fire in the adjacent building that impacted the old Dutch Dreams building too.  That was three years ago.   It is a pity that empty buildings sit for so long especially since nothing good comes of it.

in alley, back of buildings that had burned, fence with no trespassing signs around them

More people – Street musicians playing on the sidewalk.

mural on a box on the street, a group of musicians playing, trumpet, bass, singing,

As I walked around the neighbourhood I noticed a mix of architectural styles and building sizes.

From single family….

tall trees and single family homes

streetscape with different shaped houses

Through midsized apartments like the older ones shown above as well as some newer ones….

midrise apartment buildings with some single family homes in the middle

apartment buildings with green space between them

… To massive apartment buildings

very large, wide, highrise residential building with white balconies

large tag graffiti that says a c k , on the side of a brick house

below: Southwest corner of St. Clair and Vaughan Road

person in wheelchair being pushed across St. Clair at Vaughan Road, southwest corner with CIBC bank in old brick building

beside lowrise building from the 1960s, a single story older brick building, Choice coin laundry

brick buildings on vaughan road, 4 storey apartment building, coin laundry, and a convenience store

mister milk convenience store on vaughan road, once a two storey house, with upstairs enclosed balcony

below: The bright yellow building of Hercules Automotive and Tire Service in an alley behind St. Clair.  The top of St. Alphonsus R C church can be seen above it.

low yellow building in alley, Hercules Automotive and tire service, parking lot in front of it, top of St. Alphonsus R C Church behind it, also three tall condo towers in the background

below: Walking westward on St. Clair approaching Wychwood Ave with yet another vacant lot.

father and son walking on sidewalk, along St clair west, towards wychwood ave

below: St. Clair Avenue Baptist Church, on this site since November 1924.

Baptist church on Wychwood ave., brown brick building

below: Beside St. Alphonsus RC Church at Vaughan Road and St. Clair.

statue of man holding a bird, a small wreath hangs beside the statue

street sign for Helen Porter Lane, with Kenwood Arts sign attached to same pole

below: Kenwood

wood utility pole in alley, painted with pink, blue, and green heart, with stripes and squares below

below: A Jack Layton quote: “Love is better than hate; Hope is better than fear.”

words written in many colours across a board on a wood fence in an alley, a quote from Jack Layton that says

hand written poem story on board, hanging next to a garage with paintings of birds in a tree

“AND people stayed home and read books and listened and rested.
… and learned new ways and stopped and listened more deeply
… and people began to think differently.  And people healed
… AND when the danger ended and people found themselves, they grieved for the dead … and made new choices … and dreamed new visions… and created new ways of living… and healed the earth as they were healed.”

below: “My Blue World – I know a place where the world is still where time and space have no hold”  Painting by Elly Dawson 2020.  Poem by Lanna M.

my blue world, a painting on a wood fence, of two boats in the water,

below: A large Canadian flag hangs over the Toronto skyline.

mural on a garage door, large canadian flag behind the toronto skyline, blue lake in front, blue sky behind

Also in Helen Porter Lane, someone has taken advantage of the space here to build new housing.

new housing built in a lane

 

The orange sign on the streetcar stop says that the 512 St. Clair streetcar stopped running early in September 2023 and will be out of service until summer 2024.   The whole line from Yonge to Gunns Loop

 

bus shelter on route 512, St. Clair streetcar, at Bathurst

below: Westbound TTC buses on St. Clair

2 TTC buses plus traffic, westbound on St. Clair in front of Loblaws just before Bathurst street

While we’re on the subject of the TTC, one very dirty bus shelter!

Stop – Take a Breath

stop sign with words and breathe added to it

locked gate, fence, vacant lot, with lowrise apartment buildings in the background

catchoo and friends

Posted: September 18, 2023 in graffiti and street art
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

A group of stickers seen on a pole on Queen Street East recently

has an image from Catchoo combined with a perplexed Sailor dude from Ty Pro in the top place – what a cute balloon! At the bottom are three heads that you might recognize from previous posts.  In pink is T-bonez from urban ninja squadron and the chosen few; on the right is a luchadore mask from bruho.

three stickers on a pole, catchoo, and others

Here catchoo collaborates with  c_priority (a k a Christopher Piccinich )  Even within the blacks of his suit there are little catchoo symbols and characters.  I was hoping that there were secret messages written on the pieces of paper on the desk but there are just squiggly lines.

sticker on a pole, catchoo along with at priority, man on red inflatable on top of desk, pointing to picture of heart framed and hanging on a wall

Last, feelings boi joins the fun.  Is it a sword? or an umbrella?  Whatever it is, there are smiles all round.

visual noise tbonez urban ninja squadron sticker with umbrella, joined by feelings boi character with long curly hair

bits of paper in Graffiti Alley

Posted: July 19, 2023 in graffiti and street art
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

Another visit to Graffiti Alley to see what’s changed…..

below: Collage on the back of a sign with contributions by many.

many stickers on the back of a traffic sign

below: An orange dragon graces a utility pole.

an intricate painting of an orange dragon on whitepaper, stapled to pole in graffiti alley, with portrait of a woman in the background

below: Sentient Cookie with “The words you’ve said to me a decade ago still echo in my brain”.

below: Another section of wall covered with the remains of stickers and slaps.

many stickers and small wheatpaste on a wall, many colourful pieces

below: Truth, It’s that simple.  Consume daily.  “Free through an earnest volition. Side effects include decreased stress and increased mental clarity….  ”  Dorian’s House.

a poster pasted on top of graffiti covered wall, picture of a bottle with yellow pills and label that says truth. words beside bottle say it's that simple

below: Who do you love?  Apparently someone loves his/her girlfriend while someone else loves, and misses,  Stephanie Ann.

graffit, red background with a little white bird, with text who do you love?

below: More ink additions, this time on a bird.  Someone has written, “no phone no wife” – either he thinks that without a phone he can’t find/attract a wife (no tindr?) or he has neither a phone nor a wife (lucky man?).  Interpret as you want.   Also, there is Kone x Roc on his wing as well as Sari D. declaring her love forever.

sticker with text glass bird, small sticker with drawing of a fat bird, some people have written in ink on the bird

below: Someone left their shoe behind… and that’s quite the reaction from Tips

a brown shoe on the ground, stickers on a metal pipe, some say postering, another is a black drawing of a face

below: 33wallflower33 whetpaste – My body my choice

wheatpaste by 33 wallflower 33 of two women and words my body my choice

below: … and another

wheatpaste by 33 wallflower 33 of two women and words my body my choice

below: Urban Ninja Squadron running away with an angry bird…. and Adopt by Praxis in bright pink

urban ninja squadron graffiti, also an adopt poster in bright pink

below: An angry white cloud seems to hover hover a drawing by catchoo

stickers on pole, including one that looks like an angry white cloud, a drawing in a circle shape by catchoo

below: More catchoo

a sticker by cathcoo of a face on shiny silver background

drawing by catchoo of many small different coloured faces mostly in shades of orange and green

below: What’s this chef serving up?

black drawing on white, man in chef hat holding a platter with what looks like a shark fin or a sailboat

below: L S and Z

below: A skull and Noah forever.

stickers on a pole, one says Noah forever, a small drawing of a skull

Photos taken June 2023

Older Entries